Wire rope or hawser



No. 608,673. Patented Aug. 9, I898. R. A. HAMMOND.

WIRE ROPE 0R HAWSER.

(Application filed Oct. 7, 1897.)

(No Model.)

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ROBERT A. HAMMOND, OF SANDVVIOH, MASSACHUSETTS.

WIRE ROPE OR HAWSE R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 608,673, dated August 9, 1898.

Application filed October 7, 1897.

T0 (tZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ROBERT A. HAMMOND, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sandwich, in the county of Barnstable and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in \Vire Ropes or Hawsers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a view of a piece'of wire rope embodying my invention, one end being untwisted to better illustrate the construction and arrangement of parts. Fig. 2 is an enlargcd transverse section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

I My invention has for its object to improve the construction of wire rope, whereby it is rendered more flexible, durable, and convenient to handle than heretofore; and to this end my invention consists in a rope formed of a series of wire strands laid or twisted together, each strand being composed of a se ries of wires twisted tightly together and said strands being each covered with a twisted strand of hemp or other fibrous material which is served around the same to form an outer elastic covering therefor, a suitable number of strands so formed being afterward twisted together, with or without a core, to form a rope or hawser, as hereinafter more fully described.

In the said drawings, A represents a piece of wire rope or hawser, which is composed of any suitable number of strands bin the present case sin-which are laid or twisted together, as shown, around a core 0, which I prefer to employ when the rope is composed of an even number of strands; but this core may be dispensed with, if desired. Each of the strands b is composed of a plurality of wires cl, which are twisted tightly together, after which the wire strand so formed is firmly and closely wound or wrapped in one direction by serving it with a single twisted strand (2, of hemp or other suitable fibrous material, preferably tarred to prevent rust or corrosion, which thus forms a soft and elastic outer covering or cushion for the said wire strand and also serves to protect the wires from wear. In practice the twisted strand of hemp is served around the group Serial No. 654,428: (No model.)

of wires inthe same machine in which said wires are twisted together, the hemp wrapping being applied to the outside of said group of wires as they are being twisted.

The nautical difference between serving and the ordinary spiral twisting of the hemp covering-strands is very great, since the strands of a served covering will lie close together almost transversely of the wire strands, as shown at c, Fig. 1, and when the rope is bent the coils of serving will not open and admit water, while a spirally-twisted covering will stretch and open as the rope is bent, thus exposing the wires beneath to the action of water. In the operation of serving the hemp covering strands or coils are tightly compressedor jammed one against the other, and thus whenthe rope is bent the coils of serving will expand on the outer side of the curve in the direction of their diameters, leaving no chance for the water to enter, and on the inner side of the curve the coils will be jammed together even tighter than when first Wound,maki'ng the rope more resilient, which is another advantage. Still another point is that the serving being freshly tar-red when put on the tar will eXude and form a coating on the wires under the serving, and thus additionally protect them. By doing away with hempen cores in the wire strands Z) I can put one more strand Z; in a rope without increasing its diameter and greatly increasing its strength for a given diameter over a rope having hempen cores.

By firmly and closely Winding each group or series of Wires which form a strand with hemp or other fibrous material, as above de scribed, the friction or rubbing of the wires of one strand against those of another, as is the casein all wire rope hitherto constructed, is entirely avoided, while the individual wires are also prevented from rubbing against the covering and wearing the same, thus greatly increasing the durability and life of the rope. Furthermore, the outer fibrous wrapping of each of the strands 1) forms an elastic cushion covering, which renders a rope or hawser composed of such strands exceedingly flexible and resilient, and as no wires are exposed on the outside of the rope it may be safely han died without injury to the hands from slivers or splinters from the wire, which forms a series of wire strands laid or twisted together,

each strand being composed of a plurality of wires twisted tightly together, and said wire strands being each provided with a twisted strand of hemp or other fibrous material served around the same in substantially transverse coils to form an outer elastic covering or cushion therefor, substantially as described.

2. The combination in a wire rope or hawser, of a series of wire strands laid or twisted together, each strand being composed of a plurality of wires twisted tightly together in direct contact with each other, and said wire strands being each provided with an outside wrapping composed of a twisted strand of tarred hemp or other fibrous material served-spirally around the same in substantially transverse coils to form an'elastic covering or cushion which also forms the outer surface of the rope or hawser, substantially as described.

Witness my hand this 6th day of October, A. D. 1897.

ROBERT A. HAMMOND.

In presence of P. E. TESCHEMACHER, B. L. MARDEN. 

